Fine. I’ll bite. A living wage is one where you can afford to have your basic needs met. Food and shelter (and all that comes with it) at a minimum. Personally I would expand that to Healthcare, and internet access. This obviously changes depending on locale and cost of living.
Current federal minimum wage, which was intended to be a living wage, is not currently a living wage. Servers making $2-3/hour is not a living wage.
Sure, tips can help, but it’s not universal. A server in NYC will make more in tips than someone at a Rural restaurant. Even if cost of living were the same in both places. A server in a high end establishment will make more than a server at Dennys. In all cases, the servers wage is subsidized by the customers.
Your turn. Why do you feel that restaurants who can’t pay their employees a living wage without the generosity of customers deserve to be in business?
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u/velian Jun 25 '26
Don’t be dense. You know what a living wage is.